PUBLICATION

Vitrification of zebrafish embryo blastomeres in microvolumes

Authors
Cardona-Costa, J., and Garcia-Ximenez, F.
ID
ZDB-PUB-071029-14
Date
2007
Source
Cryo letters   28(4): 303-310 (Journal)
Registered Authors
Cardona-Costa, Jose
Keywords
biodiversity, vitrification, microvolume, cryoportectant, blastomeres, zebrafish
MeSH Terms
  • Animals
  • Blastomeres/cytology*
  • Blastomeres/drug effects
  • Cell Survival/drug effects
  • Cryopreservation/methods*
  • Cryoprotective Agents/pharmacology
  • Dimethyl Sulfoxide/pharmacology
  • Female
  • Male
  • Zebrafish/embryology*
PubMed
17962834
Abstract
Cryopreservation of fish embryos may play an important role in biodiversity preservation and in aquaculture, but it is very difficult. In addition, the cryopreservation of fish embryo blastomeres makes conservation strategies feasible when they are used in germ-line chimaerism, including interspecific chimaerism. Fish embryo blastomere cryopreservation has been achieved by equilibrium procedures, but to our knowledge, no data on vitrification procedures are available. In the present work, zebrafish embryo blastomeres were successfully vitrified in microvolumes: a number of 0.25 microliter drops, sufficient to contain all the blastomeres of an embryo at blastula stage (from 1000-cell stage to oblong stage), were placed over a 2.5 cm loop of nylon filament. In this procedure, where intracellular cryoprotectant permeation is not required, blastomeres were exposed to cryoprotectants for a maximum of 25 sec prior vitrification. The assayed cryoprotectants (ethylene glycol, propylene glycol, dimethyl sulphoxide, glycerol and methanol) are all frequently used in fish embryo and blastomere cryopreservation. Methanol was finally rejected because of the excessive concentration required for the vitrification (15m). All other cryoprotectants were prepared (individually) at 5 m in hanks' buffered salt solution (sigma) plus 20% fbs (vitrification solutions: vs). After direct thawing in hanks' buffered salt solution plus 20% fbs, acceptable survival rates were obtained with ethylene glycol: 82.8%, propylene glycol: 87.7%, dimethyl sulphoxide: 93.4%, and glycerol: 73.9% (p < 0.05). Dimethyl sulphoxide showed the highest blastomere survival rate and allowed the rescue of as much as 20% of the total blastomeres from each zebrafish blastula embryo.
Genes / Markers
Figures
Expression
Phenotype
Mutations / Transgenics
Human Disease / Model
Sequence Targeting Reagents
Fish
Antibodies
Orthology
Engineered Foreign Genes
Mapping